Tuesday night was not a joyful night for Cristiano Ronaldo and his Real Madrid side. The Liga BBVA giants traveled to face Juventus in the 1st leg of their Champions League semi-final clash only to come out 2-1 losers.
Despite being tipped as favorites to win, Los Blancos were unable to grab any points and must now win the return leg at the Bernabeu in order to secure their spot in the final.
Although his team lost, Ronaldo can consolidate himself with the fact that he broke a new record, one previously held by rival and Barcelona star Lionel Messi.
The Portuguese ace, who scored Les Merengues’ only goal of the night, surpassed the 27-year-old Argentine as the Champions League’s all-time leading scorer, netting his 76th goal in the prestigious competition, his 54th in all competitions this season.
Ronaldo’s goal puts him on 76 in the #UCL. Messi 75 Raúl 71 Van Nistelrooy 56 Henry 50
— AS English (@English_AS) May 5, 2015
Cristiano is now the leading scorer in... > All European competitions > Champions Cup > Champions League > Euro
— MisterChip (English) (@MisterChiping) May 5, 2015
Of course, this record by the former Manchester United attacker may not stand long as Messi will be in action this Wednesday when Barcelona host Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.
Nonetheless, this feat can hand Cristiano something to smile about for a day, given the unfortunate outcome of the Juventus Stadium tie.
Furthermore, given Messi’s horrible goalscoring record against Bayern Munich and their hot-shot goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, Ronaldo may remain the all-time leading scorer for a while.
Reaction to Ronaldo's feat and his performance vs Juve
Cristiano Ronaldo has now scored 37 goals since 2012/13 in the Champions League, at least 13 more than any player. pic.twitter.com/Cdd8FXdtUm
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) May 5, 2015
Most goals in Champions League semifinals: 9] CRISTIANO 5] Del Piero and Litmanen 4] Lewandowski, Shevchenko, Robben and Zidane ... 2] Messi
— MisterChip (English) (@MisterChiping) May 5, 2015
15- @Cristiano Ronaldo has scored 15 headers in all competitions, the most in a season of his professional career.Air pic.twitter.com/JKoydqMM8r
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) May 5, 2015
0 - Cristiano Ronaldo had no touches inside the opp box in the second half vs Juventus (via @bartf). Contained. pic.twitter.com/mVHOc421Xm
— OptaJohan (@OptaJohan) May 5, 2015
Ronaldo Be Like pic.twitter.com/IxPCDKDxwb
— Troll Football (@Troll__Football) May 5, 2015
I love the irony of Cristiano Ronaldo scoring and losing the match because of a penalty.
— Rafael Hernández (@RafaelH117) May 5, 2015
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